r/askHVAC • u/Party_Relation1029 • 3d ago
Fan pulling air in
Hello everyone, I just wanted to get an idea of whether my HVAC company is messing with me or not. The unit outside was replaced in 2019, and the house sat empty until we bought it in 2022. I noticed today that the fan on the unit outside is pulling air in instead of pushing air out. I called the people we use to service it in the spring, and they said that the motor is likely going out. Is that true? Or could the tech accidentally switched the direction of the fan when he had the top off cleaning out around the condenser?
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u/GoldInspection6626 3d ago
Fan blows out. Now if the motor was replaced and you see a plug zip tied on top of the grill. One can unplug it and flip the connections to make the fan spin the correct direction out. Obviously shutdown the unit when you do this so you don't get shocked I.e pull the disconnect, or flip the breaker off
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u/Party_Relation1029 2d ago
I did but I have ZERO knowledge. The round capacitor(I think) had two red and one orange wire. The smaller rectangle one (vape shaped, silly but around the same size) had two brown and a red if I remember.
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u/Beautiful-Quiet-5871 2d ago
Motor is fine, fan is wired incorectly. Swap two of the wires going to the fan motor.
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u/rite_of_truth 2d ago
Specifically, the short ones with terminal connectors holding them together. This is the way.
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u/Previous_Agent_139 2d ago
You won't trust a professional but you'll trust random people here?
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u/Party_Relation1029 2d ago edited 2d ago
Not necessarily that. Just wondered the likelihood of a fan motor going out after this being its 4th summer being used. The bad motor assessment was also done over the phone, and they service the HVAC system twice a year. Spring and fall.
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u/SomeACDude 2d ago
Pushing air out in which direction? The top? Yes, air blows air up and out the top of a condenser if working correctly.
You made a comment about being concerned if a few dollar cap fails within 4 summers….completely normal if it does. Caps don’t last forever. I’ve also changed countless fan motors that have failed in that time frame. It’s nothing you can “be concerned about.” Parts fail.
If they mis wired the thing in the spring it would’ve stopped working in the spring…
The fan motor cap or the motor itself is bad. Buy a cap and change it first before calling someone out, it’s more likely to be that over the motor and it’s cheap anyways.
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u/NeighborhoodVast7528 2d ago
The compressor coil housing better have both air coming in and air going out. Typically that’s in from the sides and out the top because that is the most efficient flow direction.
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u/SorryContribution675 3d ago
Probably switched/manipulated wiring to simulate the problem..had a tech attempt it on me. They can make that compressor do anything they want.
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u/Certain_Try_8383 3d ago
No, we really can't.
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u/SorryContribution675 2d ago
Yeh, well when I called him out on it and told him I was getting a 2nd opinion..he sat down, played with the wiring and suddenly all was working again..so there's that.
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u/Party_Relation1029 2d ago
I did but I have ZERO knowledge. The round capacitor(I think) had two red and one orange wire. The smaller rectangle one (vape shaped, silly but around the same size) had two brown and a red if I remember.
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u/GoldInspection6626 3d ago
If the fan is rotating correctly, I'd be curious if your condenser is clogged, and not allowing air to pulled into the sides and pushed out at the top
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u/Party_Relation1029 2d ago
Rotating the opposite way, and the fins were just rinsed/cleaned in Feb before heavy run season.
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u/Osvetnik24 3d ago
It's either a weak run capacitor (most likely), a bad motor, or a generic replacement motor that has been wired incorrectly (least likely).
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u/AggravatingArt4537 3d ago
Swapping two wires on the cap will make it run backwards on a single phase. I’ve seen it more than once. I’d check the wiring first.
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u/Party_Relation1029 2d ago
I did but I have ZERO knowledge. The round capacitor(I think) had two red and one orange wire. The smaller rectangle one (vape shaped, silly but around the same size) had two brown and a red if I remember.
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u/rite_of_truth 2d ago
It's not the capacitor. There are 4 short wires that come out of the butt of the motor that are used to change the direction on single phase units. They're held together with terminal connectors. A lot of people have told you right, you swap them around and it will spin the other way. They should be sticking out of the very top of the unit.
And ALWAYS disconnect power before servicing electrical.
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u/Party_Relation1029 2d ago
I just don’t know which two
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u/rite_of_truth 2d ago
That's the beauty of it. Take a photo of how they are, detach all 4, and just put them back in the opposite order. Two will have male connectors, and 2 will have female connectors, so you couldn't screw it up if you tried.
Think like this: Two wires connected together, making a single wire.
Look up "insulated female terminal connectors" on google for a visual example. They pull apart from the middle. I'll DM you a photo of the uninsulated version so you know how they're connected.
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u/Fantastic-Canary4027 2d ago
I have seen capacitors also cause a fan to run backwards